In this lively satire of contemporary South Pacific life, we meet a familiar cast of characters: multinational experts, religious fanatics, con men, "simple" villagers, corrupt politicians. In writing about this tiny world of flawed personalities, Hau‘ofa displays his wit and range of comic resource, amply exercising what one reviewer called his “gift of seeing absurdity clearly."

More than ten thousand islands are dotted over the Pacific Ocean. Some are tiny coral atolls where a few coconut palms cling to the soil, and the only sound is music made by the wind and the waves. On some of the larger coral islands there are villages of brown-skinned people who live mostly on fish, coconuts and a few vegetable roots. Other islands are volcanic, towering thousands of feet into the blue sky, with slopes clad in jungle green, and swiftly flowing rivers. No matter whether the islanders live far to the north or far to the south, in the east or in the west, whether they live by sea or far inland in the dense jungle, they love to tell stories of how the world was made, and of adventures that happened long ago. The magic of the sea is in their tales.

The sun-child: a tale from Tonga: a re-telling of a Tongan legend including themes of the sun, royalty/ important people, family relationships, presents, curiosity, and weddings.